Extending the School Day: After School Works -- as Long as It's Not More of the Same

In August 2006, we asked our readers about after-school programs: Should after-school activities be an extension of the school day and include structured, academic components? Or do students need less structure and more time to relax after school?

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The reason for the virtual tie? Most said extending the school day with structured, academic activities could be fun and that academics need not be mutually exclusive. As one respondent put it, "Why not a combination of the two schools of thought?" Students can certainly benefit from structured after-school programs, many reported, particularly if they incorporate learning and academics. But, according to the opposition, these programs should never be an extension of the regular school day.

"After school should be an opportunity for students and teachers to explore different and exciting material," wrote one respondent, "not the same old thing."

"How much time do we need to devote to classroom academic learning?" asked another. "Most students have absorbed as much as they can possibly handle at the end of the regular school day and, most likely, will not gain any additional knowledge in an extended classroom setting."

In fact, some respondents suggested, the necessary difference in structure between school and after-school learning might be the key to improving academic performance, as "the point of after-school programs is not to provide more instructional time, but to provide an opportunity that makes the other school time more effective."

This can happen, some argued, even with after-school activities that are not tied to a specific academic standard or goal; in other words, informal learning can be the door to lifelong learning. "By allowing schools to offer a variety of nonacademic experiences," one commenter wrote, "we help balance the students' perception of what education encompasses, develop their self-esteem, and reinforce the value of informal learning," which can, in turn, support the acquisition of more formal learning during the school day.

At Edutopia, we're keeping our eyes peeled for successful after-school programs: those that -- as many of you suggest they should -- combine educational content with exciting hands-on and social activities that are as engaging for students as the traditionally "extracurricular" ones. In the Edutopia article, "A New Learning Day," Lucy Friedman, president of the After-School Corporation, describes successful programs as ones that "may not look like learning" because, through activities such as cooking classes, robotics teams, or poetry clubs, they use "stealth learning."

The concept is simple: Start with something engaging, and students will learn. The effectiveness can be surprisingly far reaching. A new study from the Chapin Hall Center for Children, at the University of Chicago, found that students who participated in the City of Chicago's After School Matters program -- which didn't have specific ties to what they were studying in school -- had better attendance, better grades, and higher graduation rates. And one poll respondent described a successful program at her school, suggesting that "kids want to stay after school to get help and move ahead" in large part "because of the structure and fun involved."

Still, it's no easy task bringing these ideas to fruition. How do we go about implementing a program that neither extends the school day nor relinquishes an opportunity for learning? As a respondent to a more recent poll indicated, the greatest obstacle to maintaining successful after-school programs can be "producing and implementing programs that are enriching and educational, but that are also fun and don't seem like a repeat of school."

Last year I started a chess club for students in grades 2 and 3. I was amazed at the improvement in their thinking skills, especially among the girls in the club. All students definitely improved in their ability to solve math problems. They also learned about delayed gratification, dealing with disappointment, and sportsmanship. This year the chess club will include students in grades 2-4. I'll be assisted by a high school student and a parent!
I really believe that after-school enrichment programs contribute to academic growth.

I am currently working every day at a small non profit organization located in a youth center right where the youth live. This program focuses specifically on the use of art as a means for youth to identify their place in their communities. Despite the fact that there is a strong focus on homework help and educational attainment, the youth really get involved in the art projects that they undertake. The most popular art project taken on by the youth are murals that represent their culture, which they display to their community. This takes youth actively engaging with their community, peers, and outsiders, in dialogue concerning who they are. In this way they are able to establish positive identities for themselves, while enhancing their education, outside of the classroom.

I teach in an afternoon program for "at risk" students in a Georgia Middle School. It follows the, more of the same pattern. I feel like we lose more kids than we help; making our time and money achieve little. In my quest to find a better approach for next year I read this article and followed the like to the Harvard Gazette. The games seem of interest as part of our afterschool homework help program. I would like to be able to use the money game mentioned but would like to not have to reinvent it. Any ideas on finding this?